1.  Significant Health History  
Prior to meeting with your chiropractor, most offices ask you to fill out a form that will provide the doctor with background information about your conditions, when they started and what were the noticeable symptoms. You may be asked to sign a release for your doctor to obtain a copy of your medical records from other practitioners .Some likely questions include:

- Where does the pain hurt the most?
- Have you ever had an injury to your spine?
- When does it hurt the most?
- When does it hurt the least?
- What were you doing when the injury occurred?

2.  Physical Examination
Now that you have finished your health history, you will most likely enter an examination or treatment room, where you will undergo a comprehensive physical examination.  This is as harmless as an examination at a family physician's or dentist's office.   Your spine is the gateway for information to travel from your brain to your organs and limbs. Chiropractors perform a lot of the usual tests that your family physician would.   For example, surveys like blood pressure, pulse, reflexes and respiration.  Your Chiropractor will also test particular neurological and orthopedic responses to gain information about the range of motion of the affected area.  This will include neurological consistency, muscle tone and strength.  The Doctor of Chiropractic might possibly further examine you to better assess what diagnostic studies he or she will have to perform.

3. Diagnostic Study
Diagnostic studies are helpful in revealing pathologies and identifying structural abnormalities that more accurately used to diagnose a condition. They may or may not be necessary based upon the results of the history and examination.  X-rays are a common study that many chiropractors perform right in their office. Other tests could include laboratory tests or a MRI, (Magnetic Resonance Imaging), scan. A MRI usually has to be performed outside the chiropractic clinic such as an outside facility or a local hospital.

4. Diagnosis
The final culmination of the history, examination and diagnostic studies results in a specific diagnosis. Once the diagnosis is established the Chiropractor will determine your course of appropriate treatment.

5. Treatment Plan
If your diagnosis calls for the care of a Chiropractor, he/she will then discuss with you a treatment plan which will include :methods used, frequency of appointments, costs, helpful tips and a general description of your personal healing process. You might be capable of receiving an adjustment the same day.  Your doctor will likely recommend a series of visits. Chiropractic care, like most manual therapies, relies on repeated interventions over time to achieve maximum effect. If you have any questions at all about your treatment plan, be sure to ask the Doctor. If you do not begin to experience improvement within a week or two, raise the question of whether the treatment is working. If you are not seeing significant improvement within a month, consider seeking another kind of care, or a second opinion.